GameBanshee Forums

Hi everybody

Ever since I went Mac (and never back) a few years ago, I haven't really been able to play Baldur's Gate the way I would have liked to (Yes there is a Mac version and no, it doesn't work for me). So imagine my joy when I read that the Enhanced Edition will be availible for my iPad! Now, I know that it won't release untill this summer, but still I would like to start thinking about what character I want to do, but I need some advice from you guys.

So I wanna go from Candlekeep to the very end with the same character, I want to be evil, since I've never done that before (Human Flesh, Blackrazor, siding with Valen etc) and I want to go ranged with my protagonist. Now Archer would be the best choice for ranged combat, but that's a no go because of ranger alignement restrictions. I was then thinking about Wizard Slayer /Thief as that would provide some versality and pose a challenge (untill UAI at least) and combine the value of ranged combat in bg1 with some anti-mage action later on in BG2. I would like to be one of the less common races for such a combo, such as dwarf or gnome (just for the fun of it) but I do have a vague memory of some race restrictions on duallng. I'm thinking WS untill i get grandmastery in short bows, before dualing to thief.

Oh, and I plan to play with a more or less full party.

So, my questions are:
Race? Can I be dwarf or gnome, or do I have to be human?
What level to dual? Is there some magic level which I absolutely should reach before dualling?
ranged weapons? Short bows right?
What alternate weapons should I go for? Carsomyr is surely a sweet option after UAI, but (1) cheesy, (2) kind of a waste as character won't actually use it that much, (3) can thieves gain profiencies in 2h swords? Otherwise I'm thinking staffs (ram comes to mind) in order to try something new.

I don't want this character to be a cripple in the party, so I would prefer as little downtime as possible (he should be able to hold his own BEFORE UAI)

Lastly, am I missing something? Is there another class which would be fun to play from distance as I've already tried the sorcs, wild-mage, kensai/cheese and paladin.

Unfortunately, if I recall correctly only humans can dual-class. Here's an idea, though, if you're set on being evil and non-human. Try playing a fallen paladin? You need to start LG, but drop your alignment far enough and you end up playing a fighter. Not very original, skillwise, but it could be great fun to roleplay!

Your wizard slayer will feel like a cripple in the party with all the good items he can't use.
Good levels for dualing are 7,9 and 13.

You'll have far more fun with a fighter/thief multiclass. This will also allow you to play a non-human.

Bows get many attacks per round and do relatively low damage per hit so classes which get a bonus to damage are nice.

Assassin could also be fun ranged with the +1 bonus to hit and damage and poisoned arrows.
Swashbuckler also works with the increasing bonus to hit and damage.
If you play human you could also dual to get a fighter with the assassin kit bonuses.